The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday decided to keep the key repo rate steady at 6.5 per cent in its first monetary policy review following the Union Budget 2024. This marks the ninth consecutive time the rate has been held unchanged, aligning with market expectations.
“The decision is driven by concerns arising from the uneven monsoon impacting agriculture production and sticky food prices,” explained Jyoti Prakash Gadia, Managing Director at Resurgent India. “In addition, the geopolitical crisis gaining new dimensions has also influenced the decision to maintain the status quo despite a perceptible check on inflation,” he added.
How will this impact home loan borrowers?
The unchanged repo rate means there will be no immediate effect on home loan EMIs. “As expected, the RBI has kept the repo rate unchanged, implying that there will be no immediate effect on home loan EMIs,” said Ramani Sastri, Chairman and Managing Director of Sterling Developers.
What should borrowers do now?
Adhil Shetty, CEO of Bankbazaar.com, advised, “Given that the repo rate remains unchanged and potential rate cuts are anticipated, floating rate loans could be advantageous. If the RBI reduces the repo rate in future meetings, your loan EMIs may decrease. This is a good time to refinance existing home loans to benefit from potentially lower EMIs.”
Atul Monga, CEO and Co-Founder of Basic Home Loan, added, “Although the repo rate has remained constant for some time, the possibility of a rate change by the central bank in the next 6-12 months cannot be ruled out. An increase in the rate could further stimulate the affordable housing segment, supporting the government’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) goals.”
Here is the detailed breakdown of interest rates for home loans above Rs 30 lakh and up to Rs 75 lakh, based on the data provided by Paisabazaar.com:
Public Sector Banks
1. State Bank of India
8.50%-9.85%
2. Bank of Baroda
8.40%-10.65%
3. Union Bank of India
8.35%-10.90%
4. Punjab National Bank
8.40%-10.15%
5. Bank of India
8.40%-10.85%
6. Canara Bank
8.45%-11.25%
7. UCO Bank
8.45%-10.30%
8. Bank of Maharashtra
8.35%-11.15%
9. Punjab and Sind Bank
8.50%-10.00%
10. Indian Overseas Bank
8.40%-10.60%
11. Central Bank of India
8.45%-9.80%
Private Sector Banks
1. Kotak Mahindra Bank
8.70% onwards
2. ICICI Bank
8.75% onwards
3. Axis Bank
8.75%-13.30%
4. HSBC Bank
8.50% onwards
5. South Indian Bank
8.70%-11.70%
6. Karur Vysya Bank
9.00%-11.05%
7. Karnataka Bank
8.50%-10.62%
8. Federal Bank
8.80% onwards
9. Dhanlaxmi Bank
9.35%-10.50%
10. Tamilnad Mercantile Bank
8.60%-9.95%
11. Bandhan Bank
9.16%-13.33%
12. RBL Bank
8.90% onwards
13. CSB Bank
10.49%-12.34%
14. HDFC Bank Ltd.
8.75% onwards
15. City Union Bank
8.50%-10.00%
Housing Finance Companies (HFCs)
1. LIC Housing Finance
8.50%-10.55%
2. Bajaj Housing Finance
8.50% onwards
3. Tata Capital
8.75% onwards
4. PNB Housing Finance
8.50%-14.50%
5. GIC Housing Finance
8.80% onwards
6. SMFG India Home Finance
10.00% onwards
7. Sammaan Capital (Formerly Indiabulls Housing Finance)
8.75% onwards
8. Aditya Birla Capital
8.60% onwards
9. ICICI Home Finance
9.10% onwards
10. Godrej Housing Finance
8.55% onwards
First Published: Aug 08 2024 | 12:03 PM IST